Macbeth’s Conscience

Act I Scene 5 in Macbeth where Lady Macbeth tells Macbeth to kill Duncan so he can become higher in power is one of the most dominant scenes in the entire play. Her speech in this scene defies her social role as a Elizabethan woman and demonstrates her robust personality, making her a leading character in the play. Not often in Shakespeare plays does a women instruct a man to do anything, let alone commit murder for the pure intention of power. Lady Macbeth creates tension between the marriage because she is acting out of stereotypical character and switches the gender roles of the male and female. Lady Macbeth’s taunts also shows how Lady Macbeth is comparable a conscience to Macbeth, clearly being on the devious side. Macbeth wants to be king and knows the crime he has to commit to become king, nevertheless he also knows that killing Duncan is morally wrong. Lady Macbeth acts as the demonic side of his conscience telling him to commit the murder and blame the murder on someone else, which gives a thought-provoking contrast to the scene that is not seen in many other Shakespearean plays.

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